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Robert F. Kennedy's speech on Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. Presented for Rhetoric of the 60's class. Speech analyzed using Neo-Aristotelian Theory and Situational Theory.
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B R I T T A N Y A R C H E RM E G A N G E T T E R
RFK ON MLK ASSASSINATION
NEO-ARISTOTELIAN THEORY
BOBBY
• Running for president• Brother of JFK• Served as attorney general under JFK
MAJOR EVENTS
• April 4, 1968 – MLK assassination •Ghetto in Indianapolis• Crowd of more than 1000
AUDIENCE
• Kennedy’s campaign rally• All citizens of America• People “who love peace all over the world”
CREDIBILITY
• Asks crowd to lower signs• Pauses respectfully/waits for reactions•Gives sad news
SITUATION
•Dr. King was assassinated • Confrontations began to break out• Segments of audience had heard
MAIN PURPOSE
• Relates to pain, grief, and anger• Asks to be compassionate and loving •Urges to push beyond current circumstances
EVIDENCE
• Compassionate and loving • Vast majority want to be in harmony• Racial injustice is a difficult obstacle • Time and cooperation to overcome
MAIN POINTS
• Sympathies with grief and anger•Urges them to pull together • Consequences• Violence• Segregation• Polarization
LANGUAGE
• Short sentences• Conversational tone - “yeah, it’s true”• Building trust
FIGURES OF SPEECH
• Anaphora • Epistrophe• Symploce• Scesis Onomaton
SITUATIONAL THEORY
AUDIENCE
• Kennedy’s campaign rally• All citizens of America• People “who love peace all over the world”
SITUATION
• Short amount of time • Inability to compose a refined speech •Disagreement over whether to speak
LIMITATIONS
• Supposed to be a campaign rally• Changed mood immediately• Paid respect to King• Addressed them best way he could
CLOSING REMARKS
“to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world”